


Just A Dress

by itsthewickedstepmother



Category: Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (TV 2018)
Genre: And softness, F/F, Just angst, There's no real plot to this, and flashbacks, and sadness, diana and zelda were in love fight me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-10
Updated: 2019-07-10
Packaged: 2020-06-25 13:32:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19746757
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/itsthewickedstepmother/pseuds/itsthewickedstepmother
Summary: Set episode 2 on the morning of Sabrina's dark baptism - Diana's wedding dress brings back some memories for Zelda





	Just A Dress

**Author's Note:**

> big shoutout to caro my fellow co-captain of the zelda/diana ship for always fuelling the angst and inspiring this pain x

“Hilda what in Satan’s name have you been doing up here it’s almost-“ Zelda’s authoritative voice faltered as she entered her nieces bedroom and her eyes fell upon the object of her sister’s distraction. “What is _that_ doing down here?” 

A snowy white wedding dress hung proudly on its hanger as the younger Spellman sister smoothed down the skirts, lessening the creases from where it had been folded away pushed right to the back of a closet for at least a decade. 

“I thought Sabrina could wear it to her dark baptism tonight!” Hilda’s sunny voice brimmed with such joy and nostalgia that she missed the far off look in the older witch’s eyes as Zelda stared at the dress as though it had cursed her. _In a way, it had._

“I’m sure our niece is perfectly capable of dressing herself.” Zelda dismissed, her gaze now flitting anywhere in the room besides the offending garment as she tried her best to act characteristically unbothered.

“I know I know, I just thought it would be nice. And you know she’s very attached to the mortal world so I just thought her mother’s dress would sort of, you know, help ease her in a little. Provide some comfort that she’ll always have that part of her inside herself.” 

“Oh don’t be so sentimental Hilda, it’s too early for nausea. Besides Sabrina will have to take it off for the ceremony anyway so what’s the point?” Zelda rolled her eyes and Hilda huffed, her patience with her sister’s attitude suddenly wearing thin. 

“For hells sake Zelda it’s just a dress, do you have to so strongly disapprove of every suggestion I make.” 

Not used to her sister snapping and her thoughts still lost elsewhere, Zelda allowed Hilda to brush past her and leave the room before she could come up with any of her usual sharp retorts. The door slammed sharply behind her and Zelda found herself alone as she turned back to the dress, her eyes swimming with long buried feelings as her slender fingers reached out and traced over the beautiful detailing of white lace, a scene from twenty years ago playing out in her memory… 

* * *

_“Oh my word, doesn’t she look beautiful!?”_

Pristine white chiffon skirts rustled as a young fresh faced blonde woman twirled in excitement in front of the dressing room mirror in the quaintest little boutique in Greendale, emotions flooding between the watching women circled around her in awed approval. 

“ _So_ lovely!”

“You look so pretty Di!”

“Edward is going to be knocked off his feet when he sees you in that!”

Thrilled chatter bubbled through the group as each of Diana Sawyer's friends and new extended family showered her with compliments and spoke dreamily about her upcoming wedding to Edward Spellman. The talk of flowers and colour schemes and bridesmaid dresses chimed brightly throughout the boutique between ripples of laughter encouraged by a generous supply of champagne. Only one woman lingered to the side of the gathering and remained silent; a red haired witch who never went unnoticed by the bride-to-be. 

“What about you Zee? Don’t you like it?” Diana asked and the room gradually fell silent. Hilda glanced up at her older sister, mystified as to why she had been acting so utterly disinterested in every aspect of their dear brother’s wedding and she gave her an unsubtle nudge prompting her to finally say something. 

Zelda glanced up awkwardly beneath heavy lashes, trying and failing to make eye contact as she stammered out her support hoping it would come across less empty than she felt.

“Y-yes. Of course, very fitting Diana.”

The silence lingered slightly uncomfortably as the two women stared at each other. 

“You look gorgeous my love.” Hilda quickly added in an attempt to make up for her older sister’s strained lack of enthusiasm. 

“Totally gorgeous.” One of Diana’s louder friends fervently agreed, tipping back the contents of her champagne glass between her brightly painted pink lips. “Hey after we’re done in here we should head to the lingerie department to get you something for the honeymoon!”

Shrieks of agreement erupted throughout the group, less enthusiastically from the Spellman sisters as Hilda tried to shake the image of her brother on his honeymoon from her head and Zelda turned even paler than her usual porcelain complexion. 

“I think I need some air.” The witch muttered to nobody in particular, making a hasty exit which went mostly ignored by everyone but Hilda and Diana.

* * *

The cool spring air mingled with the familiar smoke drifting from Zelda’s cigarette hit Diana as she stepped outside through the back entrance of the boutique fitting rooms, wrapping her jacket tightly around her exposed shoulders in the fine lace of her chosen dress. 

“So,” Zelda began after a moment of stillness passed between them, her gaze fixed firmly ahead as though even so much as looking at the younger woman would shatter her carefully constructed facade altogether. “You decided to wear white after all.”

“It’s tradition.” Diana’s silvery voice fell smoothly from her lips and Zelda rolled her eyes, attempting to appear unaffected as she took another drag on her cigarette.

“For you maybe. But you’ll have new traditions to keep in mind soon. A whole new way of life to learn.”

Diana tutted, piercing right through Zelda’s mood in a way seldom few could. “It’s important to my parents and besides, Edward doesn’t care what I wear.”

"Well he would say that wouldn’t he.” Zelda sneered, her words coming out a little more viscously than she’d intended and she instantly regretted her tone as she glimpsed the hurt on Diana’s face. 

“I’m sorry.” The redhead finally turned to look the blonde woman in the eye and her features instantly softened. “You do look…beautiful.”

“Zelda-" 

“Don’t. I don’t need your pity Diana.” 

The younger woman reached for Zelda’s hand as she started to pull away.

“I don’t pity you Zelda. I _care_ about you… You know if this is hurting you, if you’re not okay with it I don’t have to-"

“I care about _Edward_.” Zelda insisted firmly, her words icy and defensive again as the fear of getting too close only reminded her that being that close was no longer an option. Not for her anyway. “ _He’s_ the one who has been bestowed permission and granted your hand in marriage. Clearly it’s the will of a higher power beyond any of us and I just have to accept that so if you’ll excuse me-”

Zelda forcefully put out her cigarette and turned to leave when she felt Diana’s gentle grip on her arm. 

“I don’t care about the will of some higher power Zelda, I never have. I’m not anyone else’s belonging to pass around and permit to marry.”

The red haired witch shivered under the softness of the younger woman’s touch and she tried to avoid her gaze. _Pull yourself together Zelda._ She couldn’t allow herself to lose control of her feelings like this. Falling in love with a mortal while knowing full well that it’s explicitly forbidden… _did she really have such poor discipline._

As the loving warmth in Diana’s eyes permeated her Zelda could hardly stand it. _This was her punishment,_ _of that she was certain,_ the Dark Lord making a special exception permitting Edward and Diana to marry and forcing _her_ to watch helpless on the sidelines as two people she loved eternally found their happiness in each other. 

_But this was her own fault,_ Zelda reminded herself bitterly as she reflected back in her customary self-critical manner, _she was the one who ended things with Diana, broke her heart and pushed her into the arms of another._ Edward being her brother was certainly an unforeseen complication to those circumstances, but Diana didn’t know that and by the time she did it was already too late. 

Diana brushed a loose flame curl from Zelda’s face, gently pulling her back from the brink of her spiralling thoughts and grounding her again as the younger woman’s touch lingered against the blush of her cheek. Zelda closed her eyes, longing to close the distance between them and feel the tenderness of Diana’s lips against hers again just one last time. 

_But she couldn’t do this to Edward. The Dark Lord has made his wishes clear and her own happiness had to come second to his now._

Just as it always had done when they were growing up. Edward first, Zelda second. _Such_ a high achiever, always making their parents so _hellishly_ proud. Meanwhile she could never do enough, be enough. 

_She still couldn’t._

“Diana…” Zelda’s voice finally escaped her lips in a breathless gasp far cry her usual assertive tone. 

“I know you still have feelings for me Zelda.” 

Ardent blue eyes poured into the depths of Zelda’s, drawing her out from her tormented internal struggle and finally allowing instinct to take over as their lips connected. Blonde eyelashes fluttered closed as Diana sighed into the kiss and warmth spread divinely through Zelda’s body as she felt her own hand slip down from cupping Diana’s flushed cheeks to rest along the back of her neck, pulling her closer. Leaning into each other their breathing quickened but as Zelda’s fingertips brushed gently over the curve of Diana’s waist the feeling of intricate lace snapped her back to reality and she pulled away in distress. 

“No- _no_ we can’t. It doesn’t matter what I feel now.” 

“Says who?” 

Zelda broke eye contact and stared over her shoulder before backing away. _They’d already been through all this._

“Can’t you see how wrong this is?” Zelda felt herself shouting before quickly hushing herself and glancing back to check no one had overheard. “You’re marrying my brother, you’re wearing your wedding dress for hell's sake I can’t- we can’t do this. Not anymore.” 

“Well what about what _I_ feel then?” Diana raised her voice as the redhead walked away, desperate to get through to her somehow but Zelda only shook her head. 

“You love Edward.” 

Silence confirmed what they both knew as Diana couldn’t deny it and Zelda’s repressed urge to cry bubbled to the surface in a sarcastic chuckle, rolling her eyes as though they weren’t visibly brimming with tears. 

“You make each other happy. That’s all I ever wanted for him and I’ll be damned if I’m going to be the one to stand in the way of that.”

As the late afternoon breeze rushed cold around them Diana knew there was no changing her mind. She had lost Zelda Spellman to her own stubbornness and a misplaced loyalty that had been drilled into her ever since birth. It broke her heart to see the tortured look in the witch’s eyes as she looked away and privately Diana felt relieved that Edward at least held less traditional views toward his religion and way of life than his older sister did. _Maybe he will be the one to finally incite the change needed to prevent witches and warlocks from living in such misery like this, bound to the rules and a certain way of living no matter the unbearable personal cost to themselves._

If Diana could help play even a small part in freeing Zelda Spellman, then that would be some comfort in the loss of letting her go. 

“You deserve to be happy too you know Zelda,” Diana tried as Zelda headed back into the boutique, but she could tell the redhead already had her steely exterior firmly back in place as she scarcely even glanced at her on her way toward the door. 

“I think it’s best if we spend as little time as possible alone together from now on. You have my blessing for the wedding but aside from that we need to put some distance between us.” 

“Zelda-"

The door slammed hard and in a fierce flurry of red hair and lingering cigarette smoke she was gone. 

The next time the two women saw each other, Zelda watched tongue-tied as Diana Sawyer and Edward Spellman exchanged their marriage vows and committed their lives to one another. Standing in the front row dressed in black she cried, fiercely acting as though she wasn’t, of course, but few people paid her much notice anyway. 

Everyone cries at weddings. 

And when the sun set on her first day as a married woman in the dark of night at the witching hour, Diana cried too. 

* * *

Back in Sabrina’s bedroom, Zelda clutched at the dress so tightly her grip creased the fabric as she fell to the floor and regret flooded her, sobs escaping her body as she held the garment close to her heart and ached. 

“I promise she’ll make you proud today Diana.” Zelda whispered against the white skirts, consumed with guilt as she added, “Both of you.” 

Smoothing down the dress again Zelda tried to compose herself and clear her head of her own demons. This was Sabrina’s day, it wasn’t about her.

 _Of course, some things never change._

Picking herself up off the floor Zelda wiped under her eyes and glanced over to the bedside table where Sabrina kept a framed photograph of her parents. Running her index finger gently over the glass Zelda did her best to breathe out the rest of her tumultuous feelings and push the memories tightly back into their locked box in the back of her mind where she kept the two people she loved and missed most in the world but could never possibly explain why. 

_“I’m so sorry.”_


End file.
